Going from Agostino to Black Shack Alley, I think I can appreciate that the latter really allows the reader to experience life as a child should, with elements of innocence and naivety despite the harsh circumstances that surround Jose. Although both books feature a young boy journeying through adolescence, I think I’m able to connect much more given the lack of certain obvious aspects.
In the first part of the book, I especially appreciated the mischievous and adventurous nature of the kids and how it allows the reader to picture what life is like through the eyes of a child compared to their parents or guardians at the plantation. They lived in huts, had little possessions, and the adults were practically slaves, life was hard in Martinique. Despite that, I believe the island would be beautiful if not for the people who distorted its natural beauty of vibrant and diverse greenery with plantations. The behaviours of the kids only proved further how little they knew of the harsh realities that faced their parents, often destroying anything for the fun of it despite everyone having so little already.
What struck me the most about this book was the emphasis on education and its power to change lives drastically. As a semi-autobiographical book, I believe many elements of this book were inspired by the author’s own experiences, especially the way that education can be a double-edged sword. After following his grandmother’s words and going to school, he is met with a whole new world and begins to slowly distance himself from his previous life at the Black Shack Alley. Similarly, Joseph Zobel himself also grew up in Martinique, supported by his grandmother and mother and eventually got a scholarship much like Jose does. We see that Jose’s life is so different from what it once was and he is torn between his familiar childhood and promising future.
In many ways, this book was a personal account of what it was like to grow up in a “post-colonialist, post-slavery” environment. Moreover, the deaths of Mr. Medouze and M’man Tine serve to pull Jose from his protected view of the world and realize the effects of the plantation he grew up on. We see more of the growth of Jose through his refusal to work in the petites bandes as similar work caused the eventual passing of his loved ones. 4.3/5
For this week’s question, did you like this book more than Agostino? Why or why not (is it because there’s no weird stuff in this one)